Lawrence County School District

The Lawrence County School District in Arkansas is a small, unified district serving 1,067 students across just two schools: Walnut Ridge Elementary School (Pre-K through 6th grade) and Walnut Ridge High School (7th through 12th grade).

The district presents a clear contrast between its two schools. Walnut Ridge High School is the standout, consistently earning a 3-star rating and showing an improving ranking trajectory, now in the 61st percentile. It boasts a strong 91.9% graduation rate, a very low 0.4% dropout rate, and outperforms the state average in Biology (55.7% vs. 42.7%) and 10th-grade English Language Arts (43.5% vs. 37.2%). The high school also benefits from a remarkably low student-teacher ratio of 6.9:1. In contrast, Walnut Ridge Elementary School has declined to a 1-star rating, with proficiency rates in core subjects like Math (28.2%) and Science (28.3%) falling roughly 10-16 percentage points below the state average. The elementary school serves a higher percentage of economically disadvantaged students (61.11% qualifying for free/reduced lunch) and has a much higher student-teacher ratio of 16.4:1.

A critical finding is the "7th-grade slump" at the high school, where incoming students show their weakest performance, with proficiency rates in English Language Arts (24.6%) and Science (23.3%) falling well below state averages. This suggests students arrive from the elementary school already behind. However, there are bright spots: the high school's 10th-grade students excel above state averages in both English and Reading, and the elementary school shows relative strength in 4th and 5th-grade Math. The district's resource allocation appears uneven, with the high school receiving slightly higher per-student spending ($11,948 vs. $11,058) and a far more favorable student-teacher ratio, which likely contributes to its better outcomes.